Are you happy with your "tone"?

Thom · Post by **Thom** » Sat Oct 03, 2009 6:05 pm

Amongst other things, Fran and Mickie's pedalboard threads got me thinking about my "sound" and how it has evolved or changed at least.
Currently I think I am really happy with what I have, amp, pedal, guitar - sound-wise...both at home and in the band.
And it has been a long journey! Lots of pedals have been in and out, amps and guitars too.

Thinking back, I think that the last time I was this happy with how I sounded was back when I was playing through my old Marshall Valvestate VS100R, all I used was the 3 amp channels, a Zoom 707 pedal (that was mostly just used as a tuner) and a wah. Simplicity for sure. That lasted for 8 years or so I'd say.
Only when I started getting paid a bit more and had the disposable income did I begin to indulge in this whole world of guitar geekery that previously had played second fiddle to beer and cigarettes

And I have spent hundreds, thousands of pounds even, to get back (satisfaction-wise) to where I was in 1997!

So my question(s) to you guys is, are you happy with your guitar tone?
If not, why not? Were you ever happy with it, and are you looking to recapture a sound you once had?

Would be interested to hear your thoughts.

Mo Law-ka · Post by **Mo Law-ka** » Sat Oct 03, 2009 6:33 pm

i go about changing my tone every couple of months, just to see what different sounds are good.

I usually use my tele, so that doesn't ever change. I can't change my fingers or anything, so that never changes either.
I usually only change the EQ on my clean channel.

Reece · Post by **Reece** » Sat Oct 03, 2009 6:43 pm

Happy with my pedals.
Not happy with my amp.

I was much happier before I knew what I wanted and all I cared about was it being loud and distorted. Ignorance is bliss.

James · Post by **James** » Sat Oct 03, 2009 6:43 pm

I do't really have a 'tone' that I think of as mine. I like filthy fuzzy things and I like gritty mild overdrive that can be smooth,m clean or near fuzz depending on the dynamics of your playig (like an OCD set to be clean with the softest strun and dirty with the loudest) and lots of other things. I've found that with my current setup I can always get the sound I want. Where I'm lackiing is in playing ability and playability. I'm playing a guitar and it doesn't quite feel like it's right in my hands for what I'm doing and my technique is a shambles. It always sounds nice when I get it right though. The nearest I have to feeling right are my Jazz Bass and my jazz box. The bass I know isn't the best jazz bass going but it feels good to me and I think I would have to part with some serious coin to improve things. I'm happy with it but perhaps a pickup upgrade is going to help it, that might be on the cards. The jazz box I love but I can't play it that well. Also with pedals things aren't quite as simple as I would like. It's all there but could definitely be streamlined.

So in terms of the sounds I want to get I'm very very happy. In terms of being able to get those sounds not quite, but I know that's mostly my own fault.

laterallateral · Post by **laterallateral** » Sat Oct 03, 2009 6:49 pm

In matter of amp and effects, I would say that I am satisfied. It took a lot of expensive wrong to produce a fairly cheap right.
In terms of guitars, I'm still trying things out. I have my single coil sound down to something I'm really happy with but I'm still experimenting with humbucker stuff.

Does this sound completely backwards to you? It's probably cause it is.

James · Post by **James** » Sat Oct 03, 2009 6:54 pm

laterallateral wrote:Does this sound completely backwards to you? It's probably cause it is.

You have a lot less contact with your amp than your guitar. Your guitar has feel and playbility as well as the sound. They both also have looks but that's also a bit less important in an amp, or at least, amp makers tend to make less shit looking amps than guitar maekrs make shit looking guitars. I think for most poeople a good tube amp will do the job, but a guitar is a much more personal thing so it's completely understandable you feel that way about it.

laterallateral · Post by **laterallateral** » Sat Oct 03, 2009 7:02 pm

James wrote:
laterallateral wrote:Does this sound completely backwards to you? It's probably cause it is.
YOu have a lot less contact with your amp than your guitar. Your guitar has feel and playbility as well as the sound. They both also have looks but that's also a bit less important in an amp, or at least, amp makers tend to make less shit looking amps than guitar maekrs make shit looking guitars. I think for most poeople a good tube amp will do the job, but a guitar is a much more personal thing so it's completely understandable you feel that way about it.

That's exactly what it comes down to, actually. To say that I haven't played a single humbucker guitar who's sound I could totally get with would be wrong. All the humbucker guitars that I've ever loved either looked like shit or didn't have contours which is sadly, a complete dealbreaker for me. All, that is, except the Vista Jagmaster. Selling it was a stupid, stupid mistake.

Thom · Post by **Thom** » Sat Oct 03, 2009 7:12 pm

It certainly takes a while to find a guitar that fits imo - and personally I usually grow to love a guitar, there are few that I pick up and think - wow this is the one.

stewart · Post by **stewart** » Sat Oct 03, 2009 7:24 pm

i think i had an idea of what sound i was going for before i'd actually bought any equipment, if that makes sense. i was naturally going to end up on the single coil fender path. amp-wise i'm still kind of experimenting a little, but again, i know the general sounds that suit me. same with pedals, i may change the odd one or switch them around but the basic idea is always pretty much the same.

maybe i've settled into a setup i'm happy with because i procrastinated about learning the guitar for so long. i had a fairly well developed aesthetic sense (as in, i knew what i liked in music) from playing other instruments but i was kind of afraid of learning the guitar because i thought it'd be too hard. but i prepared for it for a few years before actually taking it up, and when i did i settled into it quite quickly.

so 'yes' is the answer. i know that's all a bit rambling, but it's the truth, guv.

paul_ · Post by **paul_** » Sat Oct 03, 2009 7:40 pm

I don't have a tone of my own but it's the first thing I sort out when I plug into an amp. I usually either use a crazy piercing Fendery tone drenched in reverb (use my jcm 900 or modeling software on a DI) or a chuffy edge-of-breakup dry plexi tone (superbass or superlead) with RATs. I stop rockin' if I can't get it right (it happens on bad days), I just unplug and play in front of the TV.

The basic answer is yes because I can get almost any sound I want in the house.

Live is always a compromise. I don't see how it wouldn't be unless you only ever use one guitar/amp combo or are The Edge or something.

benecol · Post by **benecol** » Sat Oct 03, 2009 7:41 pm

I'm very happy, I must admit: the guitars I've got (Jazzmaster, tele, SG and baritone Dano) cover pretty much the whole gamut of sounds I'm after, my amp is capable of crystal cleans, Champ raunch and extreme noise terror, and I've got pedals coming out of my ears. The best thing about a lot of the kit, especially the Matamp, is that they're so idiot-proof and forgiving; even with me plunking away like an overgrown fifteen year old me, they still sound fantastic.

Will · Post by **Will** » Sat Oct 03, 2009 8:14 pm

I have 2 basic tones, and I'm quite happy with both. The gear has changed slightly over the past couple years, but the basic sound is the same.

My solo stuff is all Dano U1 through my little Orange amp. Used to be bigger Fender SS amps, but the little 6" speaker and more balanced EQ of the Orange gives me a nicer tone. It's a bit compressed, very clean, and almost flat EQ-wise. It's similar to the tone I get when I plug straight through a mic preamp into my recorder. Plus it's the perfect volume. I can play late at night without bothering people, and play in the coffee shop here at a nice conversation-friendly level. And the amp is like <10lbs and $70 new.

My other tone is with my band. That's my 335 through something that overdrives mildly. Lately it's been a 100W Yamaha amp from the 70s. The clean is like a JC-120, but the single speaker compresses more nicely and there's less white noise. It has an OD channel that is very subtle, and thus never sounds too SS-ish. I usually leave it on that channel - bridge PUP for OD, neck PUP with the volume back for cleans. The neck PUP is a lipstick-bucker which has a lovely chime. I sometimes use the clean channel for R&B stuff. This amp was I think $80 because it needed a tune-up.

That's it!

the isaac eaton · Post by **the isaac eaton** » Sat Oct 03, 2009 8:16 pm

I was always thinking about selling my amp and getting a different one, but the more I think about it the more I am afraid of doing that because that amp has my sound. If I change my amp my pedals won't sound the same, and my clean tone won't be the same. The cyber twin has truly evolved into my amp, and I can't really imagine changing that any time soon.

As far as pedals go my board is not complete, I am happy with all the pedals I have now but I still need to get a couple more pedals, a few different modulation pedals, I want a whammy and a micro pog, I also want an octave fuzz and a high gain distortion too. Besides the pieces that I am missing I am totally happy with my board and the sound of my pedals, and I think that I have a rather unique sound, nothing brand new out of the box, but a lot different from the usual stuff you hear.

For guitars I only own one electric that I use, Which is my danelectro 59DC with a p90 in the bridge, I love that guitar and I will never get rid of it, that being said I still want to get 3 more guitars, I want a single coil guitar, a guitar with humbuckers, and another p90 guitar. I think of guitars and pickups as different styles of paint brushes, the pedals being paint, and the amp being a canvas. The way I look at it, guitars are used to achieve different textures and sounds that you can't achieve with just pedals and one guitar. I look at guitars like paintbrushes. I don't know if that sounds completley crazy or not, but that's how I look at it.

All that basically come down to I am very happy with the tones I can get right now, But I am always looking for new pedals to add to the board.

Justin J · Post by **Justin J** » Sat Oct 03, 2009 8:28 pm

i'm really quite happy with my greco and hiwatt. i'm a bit less satisfied with my little deluxe, which i use for band practice. i think i'd rather have a jcm800 combo, but don't have the money.

Post by **dots** » Sat Oct 03, 2009 8:43 pm

i think i'm pretty okay in terms of overall sound, options, and ease of everything. i hate complicated setups (for me, that is), and it's really hard to get much more simplified than what i play live (guitar, tuner, footswitch, amp, cab) unless i switch to a combo. i've been thinking about that last idea, but it's going to be quite a while before i can even think about such a thing since even selling my jvm head for a combo would require me to come up with another $700 - 800.

right now it probably would come down to the guitar. i really have liked playing the avri jag these past several months, but in going over some of my old demos from the last couple of years, i do miss the p90 tone my hh jag used. i've tried out the stock dragsters in the replacement by beloved shortscale brethren chipped in for, and they are still not what i'm after. i'll order a couple gfs replacements next paycheck so i can finally do an a/b between these two guitars.

the bottom line is, i wouldn't have any complaints if i was forced to using my current setup for the rest of my life. it does what i need and want. there's just this nagging question still there on whether i'm more a p90 guy or a regular single coil guy now.

Josh · Post by **Josh** » Sat Oct 03, 2009 8:55 pm

my tone has become a lot like the velvet underground's as of late.
i'm pretty happy with it, tuned one step down, clean with fuzz pedal. would like more pedals but have more to worry about moneywise.
my acoustic is tuned to ostrich, bass is tuned to standard.
even though it's like the velvet's tone, i still do a lot of my own stuff with it.

timhulio · Post by **timhulio** » Sat Oct 03, 2009 9:21 pm

Very happy with how my shit sounds. Just wish I had more time to play at the moment.

I did have a problem with guitars, but it was weight, necks, playability rather than their actual sound. Like I've got a Hagstrom II which sounds amazing- it has a raw honesty, percussive and growly or bright when needed. But isn't the most playable guitar. Now I've got the Musima with a neck profile copied from my AV Jazzmaster, which covers the same sort of sounds as the Hagstrom made, so is my main guitar now, and the Tele Thinline which has pretty much the same neck but more hi-fi sounding pickups.

Progrockabuse · Post by **Progrockabuse** » Sat Oct 03, 2009 10:21 pm

i find it difficult to get consistency in my sounds. the nice, rich balanced sound i get in a home environment will mainly turn bright and harsh when i get to rehearsal or gigging levels.

getting the balance between clean and dirty levels can get quite annoying. i find i lose power/depth in my sound. my fender is a bright amp, with a speaker that is quite bright. it needs more balls. basically if i could afford to sell it and get a marshall i would.

robert(original) · Post by **robert(original)** » Sat Oct 03, 2009 10:37 pm

i love my current setup
with moddified j.s.>loads of pedals, mainly eau claire thunder dirst and ehx chorus>68 bassman
the only thing i might do is get a nice 15 inch speaker to thro into an old peavey cab i have.
but as far as tone goes, i love my setup right now, its great for guitar or bass.

Bacchus · Post by **Bacchus** » Sat Oct 03, 2009 11:55 pm

I might be too happy. I don't worry about it or spend a lot of time trying to find a killer setup or anything. My tone might be shit and I don't realise. Having said that, I have had people come up to me after gigs and say about how nice it is, so who knows.